Reckless Ways, Beauty Surgical procedure and Intimate Texts Proceed to Undermine Tim Ballard’s Anti-Trafficking Persona
For added articles masking OUR, please go to ACJ Investigates- Derailed: Operation Underground Railroad
Textual content messages obtained solely by ACJ expose not solely Tim Ballard’s possessive tendencies but in addition his beauty surgical procedure and a surprising degree of operational incompetence.
The change options Ballard, utilizing his covert alias “Brian Black,” and one in every of his alleged victims, Kira Lynch. In a single significantly invasive message, Ballard admits to rifling by Lynch’s private drawers, casually informing her that he’s conscious of the drugs she’s been taking—an unsettling glimpse into his disregard for boundaries.
“I noticed u [sic] have as many meds as I do in your drawers,” Ballard says by way of textual content to Lynch, a line that starkly exposes his unsettling intrusion into her private life. He continues, “I wish to speak to u [sic] about that. I’ve been by super melancholy and nervousness this final yr,” framing his violation as an invite to commiserate.
Lynch had but to reply when Ballard pressed once more, “I’d like to speak to u about it.” His persistence solely deepens with the next message, “Could possibly assist me,” earlier than lastly confiding, “We each went by large betrayal trauma.” The repetition in his pleas suggests an virtually determined try and bond by shared ache, blurring the strains between private {and professional} conduct.
Lynch lastly responded with a coronary heart emoji on his final message.
It stays unclear what “betrayal” Tim Ballard is referencing, whether or not actual, imagined or only a grooming approach. Nonetheless, primarily based on ACJ’s almost six-year investigation into Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.) and Ballard himself, one vital betrayal which will have “rocked him” was the defection of his sister-in-law and former O.U.R. Chief Monetary Officer, Tevya Ware. Ware reportedly started cooperating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in its prison investigation into Ballard and O.U.R.
CFO Tevya Ware, together with then-President Jon Traces and just lately employed director Carlos Rodriguez—a retired Washington State Patrol Sergeant—agreed to help prosecutors. ACJ interviewed Rodriguez as he was en route to satisfy with investigators in Utah. All three—Ware, Traces, and Rodriguez—ultimately left O.U.R., masking their departure underneath the guise of forming a brand new anti-human trafficking group, Coaxion International.
On the time, a multi-agency prison investigation was underway, focusing on not solely Tim Ballard but in addition Legal professional Normal Sean Reyes and Operation Underground Railroad.
Ballard’s $8,000 Beauty Surgical procedure Courtesy of O.U.R. Donors
The following sequence of textual content messages reveals that Tim Ballard underwent beauty surgical procedure on December 20, 2022, at a value he talked about was $8,000.
Within the preliminary message, Ballard oddly insists, “Not vein [sic],” earlier than casually including, “I’m getting my neck chopped” and “All good.”
Lynch then inquires, “When are you getting your neck executed?”
Ballard responds with, “Dec 20,” however provides a be aware of hesitation: “If I do it.” He continues to deliberate, saying, “I wish to examine the injection possibility” and admits, “Do[es]n’t actually wish to spend 8k.”
Instantly after the surgical procedure, Ballard shared a photograph with Lynch. The picture, taken within the hospital restoration room, reveals Ballard with bloodshot eyes and surgical marker strains on his cheeks. His head, face, and neck are closely bandaged, with hospital curtains draped behind him.
He adopted up the picture with a quick message to Lynch: “Simply completed surgical procedure.”
After returning house, Ballard despatched Lynch one other image. This picture reveals him seemingly closely medicated, his face drooping and eyes bloodshot. He sits on a sofa, nonetheless bandaged, and carrying a black denim jacket.
He texted her, “I’m house,” adopted by a second image from the identical sofa, this time displaying the left facet of his bandaged face. He identified what he described as bleeding from his ear, texting, “Bleeding [blood emoji] or if [sic] my ear.”
The messages conveys a graphic show of his post-surgery situation, underscoring his want for consideration even in restoration.
The texts between Ballard and Lynch reveal a much more intimate relationship than the “strictly skilled” and “platonic” narrative that he and his attorneys proceed to push. The truth that Ballard selected to contact Lynch instantly after his surgical process—utilizing a cellphone designated for “operational use”—and to share images of himself in a weak post-surgery state, starkly contradicts the claims made by Ballard and spokesperson Chad Kolton that this was purely a platonic relationship.
This sequence of occasions additional erodes the credibility of their protection. If this had been purely knowledgeable relationship between covert operatives, why would Ballard go away clear proof on her cellphone that they weren’t actually husband and spouse, together with private particulars of his beauty surgical procedure—particulars that cartels or traffickers may simply exploit? Worse nonetheless, if Lynch’s cowl have been compromised, given her lack of expertise in legislation enforcement or covert operations, she may simply as simply betray Ballard, armed with incriminating proof.
In an announcement to ACJ, Alan Mortensen, the legal professional representing Kira Lynch and the opposite victims, acknowledged:
“The textual content messages between Tim Ballard and the ladies concerned within the COUPLES RUSE fraud reveal deeply troubling habits. Ballard manipulated these girls, invading their private areas, and trying to domesticate intimate relationships for his personal profit. His actions, equivalent to getting into a girl’s toilet and scoping out her medicines with out permission and later sharing private particulars of his life, like his want to have cosmetic surgery and his restoration from such, display a sample of grooming habits.
This proof paints a stark distinction between Ballard’s public persona and his evil non-public actions. It reveals that reasonably than being a protector, he exploited these girls in methods alarmingly just like the very trafficking he claimed to struggle. These communications will present essential perception for juries, highlighting the disturbing irony that, in his alleged efforts to fight trafficking, Ballard himself engaged in exploitative and predatory conduct that makes him the traditional intercourse trafficker.”
Assets and Additional Studying
Mutiny at Operation Underground Railroad – American Crime Journal |
Felony Investigation into O.U.R. Expands – American Crime Journal |
Tim Ballard Utah’s Flim-Flam Man – American Crime Journal | %
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